Dan56

We are all condemned to die in the flesh because we have all sinned, we aren't punished for Adam and Eve's sin, but our own. "Therefore, as through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin; and so death passed unto all men, for that all sinned" (Romans 5:12). Do you think that If God 'squashed' A&E and started over, that the next 2 people would have remained sinless? The third person we read of was Cain and he committed murder! The people in Noah's day were not killed because of A&E, but because of their own sin; "And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually" (Genesis 6:5). The bible makes it clear that we are each judged by our own works and not the deeds of those who came before us; "The soul that sinneth, it shall die. The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, neither shall the father bear the iniquity of the son: the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him" (Ezekiel 18:20). You are correct, if there had been no sin then or now, there would be no need for a Savior, but clearly, such is not the case. JMO

I believe God's sovereignty extends to everything. Nature is not independent of its Creator. Jesus said; "He maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust" (Matthew 5:45). Disasters hit everywhere indiscriminately, its the world we inherited after being thrown out of paradise. God may not direct a tornado, but He surely allows it... jmo.

Perhaps people should pray for wisdom in advance.. After-all, when you live in tornado alley, having access to an underground shelter seems prudent. I think the folks who watched Noah's ark float away would disagree that God had no control over the weather? If Nature emanated from God, its not equal to God. I'll agree though, Nature is a much less complicated subject to talk about.

There are people who genuinely need help, but there are others who exploit the system. My nephew gets $200 of food stamps a month, phone, etc. He's a bum, a healthy 35 yr old man who has a sense of entitlement. I've offered him a good job 3 times and he rejected me 3 times. He won't work because he doesn't have to work and isn't required to accept work. Its people like him that give the truly needy a bad rap. When I tell him that he needs to get a job, his response is; "Why?" I must confess, he has a valid point, he gets along very well without working. "For even when we were with you, this we commanded you, that if any would not work, neither should he eat." (2 Thessalonians 3:10)

Good for you and welcome back. I don't believe anything ticks God off more than breaking the first commandment, but His patience is beyond my comprehension. Whenever I get frustrated, I recall the patience God has had with me, and this helps me look at others differently. Many stray, but never completely forget what God originally set in their heart. As the old hymn says; "None but Christ can satisfy". Or to paraphrase Paul; "Come hell or high water, keep the faith". "For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Romans 8:38&39).

That's how I descibe God; Nothing controls God. He is.

Then what controls nature? Nature is as nature does, but it did not come from nothing.

If weather wasn't created, it wouldn't exist. If weather is substance, it is product. If the weather was purely chaotic, we couldn't predict it. JMO I'm of this mindset, although I don't believe its God's fault even though its His creation. Bad weather is allowed because of sin, it was God's judgement to allow/create havoc. But I guess in an indirect way, it is God's fault since He created the conditions that brought it about. I asked the question because every time something bad happens like this, people ask; 'How can God allow this?' Or they pray for help from the God who created the bad weather. I have a hard time giving anyone an answer they can accept. I just tell them that there are spontaneous evil events that occur in nature, it rains on the just and unjust alike (Matthew 5:45). The tower of Siloam fell randomly killing 18, but it wasn't because they were horrible sinners (Luke 13:4-5).

With the recent tornado in the Oklahoma City suburbs where 51 people are now dead, I wondered what people attributed the disaster to? Of course the weather flattened the area, but is there a rhymn or reason for it, or do we just chalk it up to a random and unfortunate occurrence? I personally believe that God created everything, including the weather, so directly or indirectly, nothing happens without God knowing or controlling the parameters. In this case, the atmospheric conditions which formed the tornado were part of what God put into motion.

Yes, I believe people have every right to worship false idols. Because what's false to me, may be very real to them. I believe a persons 'rights' end when whatever they're worshipping becomes detrimental to others. In other words, the right to worship an idol ends when it involves sacrificing children. When Islamic extremist decide that every infidel who doesn't agree with them needs to die, then I have a problem with it.

Sometimes prayers just require a little patience before getting an answer; During intensive prayer, I asked God, "Is it true that a thousand years is as one day to you?" And God answered, "Yes, my son." Feeling the utter awesomeness of God, I then inquired, "Father, since you are all powerful, may I please have a million dollars?" To which God replied, "Yes my son. Tomorrow."

People are wrong, its not a right as much as it is a state of being human. Anything outside of the truth is wrong, and none of us are the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. Doing wrong has consequences, so I wouldn't define wrongful actions as a right, particulary when doing wrong is detrimental to other people.

Always watch your back when strolling on the beach...

Jesus kept all the law, he had to accomplish this in order to be the perfect sacrifice. In doing so, he fulfilled prophecy and the old covenant, bringing in a new covenant. Paul expounded upon what all that meant. The kingdom of God is not obtained by law, but through the death and resurrection of Christ. We are no longer bound by the law because Christ removed the curse of the law. So I see no contradiction, Jesus didn't say that whomsoever kept the law would have eternal life, but that salvation came through him, and Paul consistently reiterated that same message.

I believe Paul was an apostle called by Christ, just as the bible says he was. I see no contradictions in his letters to what Christ had taught. Paul's basic mission was to take the gospel to the gentles, and he successfully established many Christian churches.

Procrastination is a subject that I've always wanted to write a book about, but I just never got around to it.

"If a person chooses not to use violence, then they should also be prepared to suffer the immediate and long term physical and emotional consequences of their actions....which in many cases are not fully known until many years later." To fight or not to fight, that is the question. To resist violence or stand idly by and perish. A persons cause and purpose might determine whether they're a pacifist. Christ had a reason not to fight, Patton had a reason to fight, neither were cowards, both were honorable men with a purpose behind their choices. If a greater good is achieved by a persons decision to fight or surrender, then perhaps there's nobility in either choice. There's a time to die and a time to live, circumstances often determine the time.

When the bible speaks of being spiritually dead, its describing a separated from God. Sin separated A&E from God, so the day they sinned, they spiritually died. It simply means that they lost everlasting life. The parable of the prodigal son teaches that a lost soul separated from the Father is dead, but a soul is quickened and made alive when reunited with the Father; "For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found" (Luke 15:24).

My version is what I interpret from the bible, and right or wrong, I don't think its a myth. Isaiah 14 and Ezekiel 28: 11-19 as I interpret them are describing Satan/Lucifer. Essentially, Lucifer was the cherub (angel) that guarded the mercy seat, but he fell to pride and also caused a third of heaven to rebel with him against God (Revelation 12:4). Things got messy after that. Nothing in those 3 verses indicated a third death? We can only perish physically and spiritually, there's not a third option (cats aside). "And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell" (Matthew 10:28). A&E sinned and died spiritually when the Tree of Life (Christ) was removed from the garden. Those outside of Christ are spiritually dead, your either alive in Christ or dead to sin. Physical death comes first, but technically, you don't spiritually perish until after judgement.

"But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death" (Revelation 21:8) "For thou (Satan) hast said in your heart, I will ascend into heaven. ... I will be like the Most High'" (Isaiah 14:13-14) "Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels" (Matthew 25:41)

Not in my book An unrepentant murderer is dead meat, both physically and spiritually. There was an angel who wanted to be God too, and he'll soon be swimming in a Lake of Fire (according to my book)

The OT God instructed us to kill murderers and rapist, so its unfair to claim He does nothing about it when he clearly condemns such things. For now, God gave us the freedom to govern ourselves, so He expects us to do our own laundry. God stepped-up many times in the OT when his anger reached a boiling point, and God will pour out his wrath in the future. The biblical God also warns of the second death, and intends to terminate many sinners spiritually. So God is not a bystander watching a movie, he's making a list and checking it twice and is gonna find out who's naughty and nice. Your god doesn't distinguish between good or bad, so he cannot be righteous or administer justice. He loves and forgives unconditionally, so your god will not punish murderers or rapist physically or spiritually. In fact, by accepting everyone unconditionally, I'd submit that your god endorses and promotes murder, rape, torture, and any other evil thing a person can conjure-up. That's not perfect love, giving everyone an unconditional free stamp of approval is the mark of an uncaring god who has never demonstrated any kind of love. So while the biblical God corrects those he loves, your god is all-accepting and corrects nothing. Can your utopia exist where harmful behavior is endorsed?

No........... If your referring to Christ, he was not beaten and crucified so that we could be forgiven, repentance is the only criteria required for forgiveness. Justice is a separate matter though, it requires punishment. If such was not the case, God could not be Just or righteous. God is too good not to punish sin, God would be a sinner if He didn't punish sin.

What would that be? Beyond us (mankind), what is God's purpose for himself?

Your idea of unconditional forgiveness acknowledges no offense, so it is meaningless. If there is never anything to forgive in the first place, then your god or One Source has no meaning and no purpose. Unconditional love and unconditional forgiveness can only exist in the absence of justice and righteousness, in which case, God cannot be good. Conditional forgiveness has nothing to do with extortion, and blind love is void of substance. JMO